Homeland Security, Department of

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS), which came into existence on March 1, 2003, was the largest national government reorganization [Page 641]since the creation of the Department of Defense, the Central Intelligence Agency, and the National Security Council, all outcomes of the National Security Act of 1947. The new department, the result of the Homeland Security Act of 2002, was organized by bringing together 22 disparate organizations and entities from across the national government. Notable inclusions in the new department are the Federal Emergency Management Agency, the Secret Service, the U.S. Coast Guard, the Border Patrol, the U.S. Customs, several entities related to immigration, and the new Transportation Security Agency. Also included in this array were several offices from the Department of Justice. Though the ...